Equestria Detective
by devilnightking100
Summary: A series of oneshots about a private detective with a strange power, and I don't mean his deductive skills. Join Watchful Eye as he investigates murder, theft, and everything in between! I promise it's better than it sounds!
1. Case of the Snowflake Heist

_**This is the beginning of just a collection of oneshots. My first attempt at a first-person POV, so please be nice.**_

My name is Watchful Eye, and I'm a detective for anyone who needs me in my homeland of Equestria. What, ponies can't commit crimes? Unicorns like me should just sit inside and study magic? I'll have you know that crime-solving is _my_ special talent. Take the time the first snowflake was stolen: I was the one who caught the scoundrel. Oh, you're interested now? Well then, pull up a chair and I'll tell you about it.

It was a summer night, late into it, in Canterlot, when a messenger mare came from none other than Princess Luna. To think that I had been requested by the princess of the night herself!

Not wanting to keep her waiting, I grabbed my detective kit as well as my trademark red scarf and hurried out the door. On the way, I took note of the mare who had come. She had a ring on her hoof, and some marks around her waist that suggested she was the mother of a family. While I made no mention of this, as it wasn't my business, I stored the knowledge away for possible future reference.

When we arrived at the palace, we were immediately shown to the throne room. I took note of the night-black coat and blue tiara of the alicorn in front of me and quickly determined that I was standing before Princess Luna. I bowed low and she asked me, "Art thou the Detective, Watchful Eye?"

"I am indeed. What can I do for you, Princess?" I replied before rising.

Luna seemed to sigh in relief as she stated, "I require your aid. Something had been stolen that is of great historical and sentimental importance. Follow me."

We left the throne room, went through two halls, and climbed three flights of stairs before coming to a tower room with its door ajar. I quickly looked around and saw the stainglass windows depicting the story of Snowdrop, the blind pegasus filly who created the first snowflake. I also took note of a pedestal in the center of the room that looked as if something had been there not a week ago. No dust had even collected in the center, only the rims.

"As you have no doubt deduced," Luna began, "This room contained the first snowflake, until it was stolen this very night. There is a preservation spell around its urn, so the snowflake is in no danger, but it is worth at least half the royal treasury."

I suppressed a whistle as I turned to my client. "You wish me to find the thief, retrieve the snowflake, and return both to you, I presume?" When the Princess nodded vigorously I laughed and said, "Very well, I shall have it back to you within the week. Yes, six days should be enough to find it." After about a million "Thank yous" from the Princess, I set to work.

I had began to look for anything that could set me on the path to the culprit. Seeing nothing in the room, I moved to the door. Studying the lock, I saw no signs of forced entry, which meant they had stolen the key somehow. I turned to Princess Luna and stated, "I'll need to interview the guards in charge of the keys to the castle."

"Surely you do not think one of our own guards committed this theft." Luna gasped.

"No, I think they were tricked by somepony posing as a guard. I need to know who had the key to this room, and who might have requested it tonight. Until then, I suggest you lock down the castle. The Culprit could still be in the area." I instructed. The Princess gave some orders and the few guards who accompanied us left.

"The keymaster of the castle is an earth pony by the name of Locksmith. He would be the one to speak to." Luna informed me. "He would be at his chambers. Mayfleet, show him the way." she instructed the messenger mare from earlier.

"This way, sir." Mayfleet, who later insisted I call her May, said, walking out the door. She led me down to the ground floor and turned four corners before ending at a simple wooden door. May knocked and an old earth pony with a tan coat and night-blue mane opened. "This gentlecolt wanted to ask you a few questions. Princess Luna has requested you answer them."

"Well, if it's for the princess." the old stallion replied, allowing us into a room with keys lining the walls.

"Surely these keys don't all go to the castle!" I said in awe.

"Most are just copies of each other in case a guard loses one." Locksmith replied. "What can I do for you?"

"Did anypony come requesting a key to the Snowflake Room?" I asked calmly.

"Not that I can remember, let me check the roster." our host took out a book that was at least as thick as my head and began flipping pages. "I log all keys here so I can go back to it if I'm asked such a question." he explained. "Here we go. A guard by the name of Stout Sword."

We thanked the old stallion for his time, and went to speak to Luna. "I know this guard. I'll get him myself." the alicorn princess led us down a few halls before coming to another wooden door, this time blue. When Luna opened it though, we saw a gray coated, black maned pegasus mare tied to her bed, a cloth gagging her. I used my own magic to untie her before Luna asked, "Who did this to you?"

"Some pegasus dressed in black. I was just getting ready for my duties when he snuck in and hit me over the back of the head." Stout replied. I wrote this information down in my pad and asked if she saw anything. "No, but when I came to, I was bound to my bed and I saw my armor was gone. I assume he used my armor to commit some heinous act." she then turned to Luna and bowed. "Princess, I am sorry I failed you."

"Rise, my friend. There was nothing you could have done." Luna replied, pulling the mare to her feet. She then muttered something and hugged the downcast mare. "I charge you with helping Watchful find the Snowflake and return it."

"So long as he's okay with it." Stout said uncertainly.

"It doesn't bother me. Actually might help to have a pony with military training." I shrugged.

"Then this charge, I will carry out to the letter."

"Princess, I feel that the culprit has already evaded your guards and left, as he was able to out stealth a soldier of your personal guard." All three mares looked at me in astonishment. "What?"

"How did you know she was of my personal guard?" Luna inquired.

"I noticed the necklace on the dresser," I explained. "It is worn only by the Princess Personal Guard, and seeing as you knew her personally, I took an educated guess."

"Well, you are correct, and she is one of my best." With a thank-you, the two of us left the castle.

Stout and I had just left the castle when I turned down a side street. "What are you doing?" the guard asked me.

"Relax, I have a friend in this neighborhood who might be able to help." I reassured her. We walked down the street while some thugs eyed my companion. "Back off, boys. She's with me." I warned. The thugs averted their eyes as I opened a Tavern door. "Barkeep, is Black in?" I shouted to the pony at the bar.

"His room, but you're not the first to ask about him tonight, if you catch my drift." Barkeep replied, rolling his eyes.

I sighed and motioned for Stout to follow. We went up the stairs and moved to the back room. I knocked and heard, "Just a second." We waited until we heard, "Come in." We walked in to see an all black stallion and a blue mare at the small table in the center of the room. I turned to the stallion.

"You're not fooling anyone, you realise?" I asked him.

He laughed and stood. "No, I didn't think I would. What can I do for you, Watchful."

I pulled Stout through the door and said, "This is Stout Sword, she and I are investigating a robbery we thought you might be able to help with. Stout, this is Black Market."

Stout gasped. "You're friends with one of the most notorious smugglers in Equestria?" she asked, clearly shocked.

"I prefer discount importer." Black joked. "Let me hear it, I'm not sure I could help you though."

"Are you sure that's wise?" Stout asked.

"Relax," I smirked. "I can count on his discretion." I filled Black in on what had happened and everything I had learned thus far. "What do you think?"

"I can only think of one pony who would steal such an artifact. He calls himself the Street King, but no one knows where he lives or what he looks like." Black informed me.

"That could be an issue." I muttered. "Do you have any idea where I should start looking?" Stout cleared her throat, "Sorry, where _we_ should start looking?" I noticed her smile.

"You could try the train station streets, but this stallion has stayed in shadows for a reason. He's dangerous."

"After what he pulled in her room, so is Stout." I laughed. The two of us left and headed toward the station. "I would like to look around the abandoned areas first. That's where this type like to hide out." I informed my companion.

"Understood. There's a few abandoned warehouses closer to the station." Stout replied, then promptly yawned loudly.

"Still a bit drowsy from being knocked out?" I asked. She only nodded. After what seemed like only a few minutes, but was more like half an hour, we arrived at our first destination. "Just look for anything that seems suspicious. If it bugs you, even in the slightest, call me over." Stout nodded and we entered. I took the left half of the warehouse and found that most of the crates were marked for shipment to Saddle Arabia. I inspected the boxes, but didn't find anything of interest.

I heard a horn charge and I quickly armed my shield spell as a beam hit it from behind me. "Impressive." Came a deep voice. "Get em, boys!"

"Stout, company!" I shouted as three earth ponies came at me. I teleported out of the way and shot two beams before they could recover. The ponies staggered but didn't fall as they charged for me again. I readied another teleport, but found it unnecessary as Stout barreled into the first two. "Glad you could make it to the party." I commented.

"Well, I wasn't going to miss a chance to beat up somepony when I feel like I need to." Stout replied. We stood flank to flank, and the fight was on.

Stout bucked one of the stallions and I shot another before they realised they'd have a run for their money taking on a trained royal guard and a unicorn clearly well studied in attack magic. Two began to duck behind crates. "They're getting away!" Stout shouted, starting to give chase.

I quickly grabbed her tail with my Telekinesis spell. "It's a false retreat. They're trying to separate us." I hissed. Stout calmed down and realised I'm right before she struck the remaining adversary.

"Besides, we only need one to question." Stout commented smugly, seeing her attack had knocked out the unlucky colt. I asked her about her search and she shook her head. "No luck. Wherever the snowflake is, it's not here." Stout informed me, sounding rather defeated.

"Don't lose hope. We'll find it." I replied confidently. I took some nearby rope and tied our little hostage before I thought of something. "The voice was familiar."

"What do you mean?" Stout inquired.

"The voice of the unicorn who tried to shoot me in the back, I've heard it somewhere before. I've heard it recently." I said, more to myself than my companion. "It almost sounded like...who was it?" Pondering that question, the two of us left and continued our search while waiting to interview our unwitting companion. Finding nothing of interest, we returned to the hotel I was staying at.

The pony stirred about ten minutes after we had arrived. "What the- where am I?" he demanded. Seeing us he demanded, "Who the buck are you?"

"Language, there's a lady present." I admonished, only to be punched in my foreleg. "What?" I asked innocently.

"Why did you attack us?" She asked, ignoring me completely.

"The boss said to take out the ponies snooping the warehouses." the stallion replied nervously.

I rolled my eyes and looked straight into his. "Though I usually enjoy it, I have no time to guess if you're lying or not so I'll just take the direct method." My usually black left eye suddenly turned red. "Starburst Le Equestria commands you, answer all our questions truthfully." What? Wasn't expecting a prince to be wandering around as a commoner? Mother didn't agree either, but I don't care what Princess Celestia thinks about me. My Command Mantra took effect and the stallion's eyes were rimmed with red.

"Yes, my lord." he replied robotically.

Stout only gaped at me, so I asked simply, "Who do you work for?"

"The Street King, I don't know his real name though."

"Why not? He's your leader."

"The boss doesn't want someone with some sort of truth spell letting his identity slip out." the stallion replied without missing a beat. Such is the power of the Mantra.

"Do you have any idea what he looks like?" I asked coldly. I hated what my Mantra did to my attitude, but desperate times and all that.

"No, he wears a mask so no one can describe his face." our guest answered.

"Do you remember what he sounded like?" Stout asked, apparently getting over my identity.

"His voice was warped, I couldn't tell anything."

"A voice modulator." I reasoned. "So he has access to some sort of Earth tech." My eye dulled as I said, "I think we've gotten everything we can out of you."

The stallion came out of his trance and I untied him with a dismissal. Stout looked at me. "I won't tell anyone, you have my word as a guard."

I smiled and replied, "Of course not, if I thought you would I'd have already Mantra'd you." With that, we went back to the palace.

Stout and I left for the palace shortly after our "interview." We reported to Luna that the castle still housed the snowflake. "How can you be sure?"

"The stallion we interviewed said Street King had a voice modulator, that implies Earth tech." I explained. "You have two portals to earth. One here and one in the Crystal Empire. I need access to the one here."

"It only opens every thirty moons." Luna objected. For anyone who's confused, that's two and a half years.

"And if my hunch is right, it's open now." I retorted.

"Watch your tongue, little detective." my aunt hissed. I looked her in the eye and called my Mantra.

"Don't make me use this." I pleaded coldly. To say she was shocked would be an understatement as she silently led the way to the second mirror. When the door opened- Mahogany wood, I noticed- the mirror was indeed activated. "I was right. Street King is an insider." I hissed, hating having been duped. "I want a list of every staff member and guard to interview." I demanded. _It doesn't make any sense._ I thought, _Why steal an artifact when the princesses pay top bit for all their staff? The only one who isn't the envy of all paydays is the messengers._ I gasped. That was it! The voice modulator, the free reign of the castle, the anonymity of the job going in and out all day and night. It all pointed to a messenger, but which one?

My list was provided and I asked Stout who the messengers were on the list. She looked over it and said with finality, "There's only one. Mayfleet."

"Find her. I want to talk to her first." I demanded. Stout bowed and started to leave. "No more bowing please, it's so annoying." I requested. She nodded and left.

While she was gone, I began searching the castle myself, berating myself the whole time. _Stupid! Idiot! Pathetic failure of a detective!_ I was shouting at myself. Stout found me, and she was out of breath. "What's wrong?" I asked instantly.

"She's gone. Mayfleet left the castle not two minutes after we arrived." Stout reported. I cursed and stalked out the gate. "She lives at 240 West-hoof lane according to her paperwork."

"Fat chance. She probably set up a temporary residence so you could find her when needed. She's got the snowflake and she's gonna head straight to the station, or hit the road on foot." I replied with more venom than even I could have guessed possible. "I'll take station."

"I'll go road." Stout replied, taking off. The chase was on.

I ran full speed towards the train station, determined to catch my culprit. Mayfleet wouldn't get away. Reaching the station, I began searching the crowds for my prey as the train leaving for Ponyville screeched to a halt on the platform. _Gotta hurry, if she's here I'll lose her on the train._ I thought, lighting my horn for a search spell. The beam shot off toward the train and I began to follow it as quickly as I could, having to teleport a few times.

May turned and saw me, panic filling her eyes. She hefted her rather large pack and tried pushing past a few ponies. I had her, but she was getting away! "Stop that mare!" I shouted, teleporting again. Everyone froze, not sure who was being called out. My plan to perfection. I appeared next to her, but she ducked into the train as the door closed. "DAMMIT!" I shouted, stomping my foreleg. She had evaded me! I teleported to Stout and informed her of what had happened.

"She's headed to Ponyville? That gives us a place to start looking. We can cut her off if we get in contact with Princess Twilight." Stout reasoned. I nodded and asked her to take care of it while I turned back to the station.

"She won't get away. The chase is on." I muttered.

" _She hardly seems like the type to just run away. She'll find somewhere to hide."_ a voice behind me said.

"I don't remember summoning you, Darkus." I hissed without turning around.

" _I can come when you're stressed, you know that."_ The second presence replied evenly. " _So, where would she hide there?"_ Darkus questioned.

"Depends on if she has family there or is meeting the snowflake buyer." I replied. "I'll have to start at the station and see if anyone saw her get off. That train goes to the Crystal Empire afterwards, so she could hide out there too."

" _Not this late, the train will wait until morning._ " Darkus pointed out.

"True. Ponyville is our only option, but where would she hide?" I muttered.

" _There are a number of places. A hotel, for example."_

"Easily identifiable if somepony came asking for her." I reasoned.

" _Perhaps a family member's house?"_

"Same issue, if we found out who they even are."

" _Some abandoned area in the park, or an alley. There are plenty of those in Ponyville."_

"Not since Tirek and Twilight destroyed half the town during their battle."

" _Well, what's the one place a servant can get a decent place then?"_ Darkus' question made me realise where she was hiding.

"Twilight's castle. If she was just 'delivering a package' the princess would easily be fooled." I gasped. "I'll need to tell Stout when I can." I began to turn.

" _Might as well wait, I can sense her coming now."_ Darkus said mildly before withdrawing into whatever oblivion he lived in. Stout appeared and I filled her in.

From there there's really not much to tell. We found Mayfleet in Twilight's guest quarters like Darkus and I predicted, got the snowflake returned, and the thief was arrested. When Luna asked me to name my price for helping, I simply requested a ticket to the Crystal Empire, and off I went into my cousin's domain, and into another case I'll tell you about some other time.


	2. Case of the missing princess

_**The next installment, what do people think so far?**_

 _ **Darkness and Light, Into the Chaos**_

I arrived in the Empire the next day around noon and made my way directly to the palace. The guards saw me and smiled with a "Welcome back, Watchful." This wasn't my first time here.

"Is Cadence busy?" I asked happily.

"No, she's just talking to her husband in the throne room." One guard, who I remembered was named Ruby Blaze, answered me.

"Thank you Ruby," I said with a cavity-giving smile. "I'll just head there to see her." I then made my way to the throne room, where I saw a new guard standing watch over the front door. "Hello, and who might you be?" I asked.

"You first." the guard replied.

The door opened to reveal Shining Armor. "Oh, hey Watchful." He greeted, looking to the guard. "It's okay, Thorax. He's a friend." I thought the name was odd, until the pony shifted from a pony into a changeling!

"Sorry, but with everything that's happened, I can't be too careful." Thorax said sheepishly.

"It's alright." I replied, having figured this was the kind changeling I had heard so much about. "Shining, how is my cousin?" I asked the prince.

"Well, she's been a bit down for a while now. I haven't felt great myself." Shining replied, putting his hoof on his forehead. "Come on, she's sure to cheer up once she sees you're here." The three of us walked in.

And I instantly knew something was wrong. Princess Cadence took one look at me and I knew those weren't my cousin's eyes. I shot a cancellation spell at her, and she was engulfed in green flames before appearing as a changeling. "Where's my cousin?" I demanded angrily.

"How did you-?" the changeling gasped.

"There was confusion in my appearance where there's usually joy. Cadence loved it when I visited."

"I know this changeling. He defected from the hive to satisfy his own selfish goals." Thorax hissed. "I had better check on Flurry. I'll be back."

"You'll never get me to spill." The imposter snarled.

I picked him up with my magic and grinned evilly. "Wanna bet?" My eye began to glow red. "Starburst le Equestria commands you, answer all my questions truthfully."

The changeling laughed. "Your little glowing eye has no effect on me, little prince." he mocked. I then chose to slam him into the diamond walls, causing him to cry out in pain. "That did though."

"Who do you work for?" I demanded.

"Go to Tartarus." was the reply.

"Shining, maybe you can talk some _sense_ into this little upstart." I said coldly, turning to one of the few royals I got along with.

"Gladly." he replied just as coldly. I relinquished my magical hold and Shining took hold, nearly strangling the pony-like bug. "Where is she?"

"My answer remains the same as the other unicorn, little prince." the changeling laughed. Shining slammed our little imposter into the wall and this time I saw blood on his forehead. Did you know changeling blood was green? "I won't talk to pony scum!" he hissed, only to be slammed into the wall again.

"Enough, Shining. He's no good to us dead." I ordered. "We'll let him sit in the dungeon while I investigate the empire. If our little guest decides to talk after some time in the dungeon, send Thorax." Shining nodded and the changeling was hauled off. I soon took my leave to find Cadence. The case began.

I started with asking around the palace for when Cadence had began to act strange. Emerald Blade informed me of a week ago when she started to wake up irregularly, sleeping in until somepony came to get her. Cadence was always able to get herself up when she needed to be, and was usually good about doing so. The changeling infiltrated the area about a week ago, then. DAMN! That means she could be anywhere now. _Darkus, I need some help thinking._ I thought angrily.

" _I'm here, no need to shout."_ My shadow replied. " _I heard what was going on. Start thinking, where would a kidnapper take the princess of the Empire?"_

"Well, they would probably take her somewhere secluded, but closeby so they could get around easy." I reasoned. Sometimes I really didn't know what I would do without this being.

" _Exactly. Where would somewhere like that be?"_ was Darkus' next question.

"Depends on the reason." I replied, "If they intent to hold her for ransom, they would want somewhere between here and the snow. If they intend her a political hostage against Mother, then they'd want to make for the train station. There has to be a way to narrow down the area to search."

" _Well, how would you do that?"_

"I need Cadence's mail." I determined. "If there are any threats against her, there could be a clue to get me on the right track. Thank you, Darkus."

The presence withdrew and I informed Shining of my theory. "It's worth a shot. I'll get it." he left and returned with a box of letters addressed to Cadence. "There are a lot, could take a while."

"Then we best get started. I'll take this pile, you start with that one." I ordered, pulling out a stack of letters with my magic and opening each one, reading over them to find a clue. After an hour of fruitless search, Shining called me over. "Perfect." I muttered, reading over the letter. "If you continue to refuse me, I will have no choice but to take a more direct approach." I turned over the envelope and said, "Search for more addressed like this. Ignore the rest." Shining nodded and each new letter we found pointed to something going on behind our backs. _What the Tartarus are you mixed up in, cuz?_

I began to look around Cadence's room to see if I could find some more clues about what she was mixed up in. Judging by the letters I had read with Shining, it was something bad, which meant there was an issue as Cadence wouldn't get mixed up in something like that without a good reason.

" _I would recommend the study."_ Darkus stated in a singsong voice. I didn't even bother responding as I moved to where he had advised and started searching desk drawers until I found papers about some sort of money transactions. " _Looks like a large sum, at least twenty-five hundred bits."_

"But why would Cadence be moving that much money around?" I asked, searching for some sort of recipient. "Here we go. Black Market? What's he doing with my cousin?" I gasped. Why hadn't he mentioned Cadence last night when Stout and I were there?

" _I don't know, but he was on the same train here as you. I saw him get off._ " I dashed right out of the castle, forgetting I was a unicorn and could teleport, and sprinted through the streets until I came to the Crystal Tavern.

I located Black at the back, romancing some new mare again, and quickly interrupted. "I need to talk to you, now." I demanded.

"Come on, Watchful." Black replied, "Can't you see I'm talking."

I turned my head to the mare and my eye began to glow as I asked, "Could you please leave us to talk for say, five minutes?"

My Mantra went to work as she robotically replied, "Sure, no problem." and left.

"You must either have something urgent, or a serious death wish." Black hissed as my eye began to fade back to normal. "So, what is it?"

"Why was Cadence sending you money?" I asked.

"Said she needed help with an underworld stalker." Black shrugged. "She asked me to find him so her guards could make an arrest. I simply named my price and she paid, though I haven't found anything quite yet."

"Well, you better hurry," I hissed. "Cadence was abducted a week ago and replaced with a changeling." Black flinched at my tone, which could have been kinder. "If you find anything, I want to know."

"Understood, and your five minutes are almost up, so please make yourself scarce."

"Black," I warned.

"Fine, I'll ask to meet her tomorrow instead." Black rolled his eyes and with that I left the tavern. I now had an idea of what was going on, I had Mantra'd him a while ago to answer my questions truthfully whenever I came calling. It was impossible to disobey me so I had nothing to fear. Cadence was being stalked, and it had to be someone low or underworld profile like she thought. There wasn't much in the way of high-profile stallions who can call on a changeling here in the Empire. My only question now was who? There were no underworld bosses based in the Empire, I would have known about it. There could be a grunt with ties to the Empire, but I doubted I'd get that to fly. Who was the guilty party? There was only one group who would know, I had to talk to the guards.

I reached the Palace at about shift change, so it was easy to find Cadence's personal guard. I found the only two who she allowed to accompany her- she was such a free spirit -and called out to them. "Flash! Emerald! I need to talk to you." The pegasus and crystal pony came over to me. "I need to ask, has anyone approached Cadence since I was last here?"  
Flash was the first to speak up, "There were a few ponies who came to talk to her during her daily walks, but nothing that would qualify as odd."

Emerald shook her head, "That's not true, there was the freak last month."

"She told us not to mention that." Flash argued.

"Her safety takes priority over her orders." Emerald retorted, turning to me. "About a month ago, there was this weird guy in a black cloak asking all sorts of questions about artifacts and treasures in the Crystal Empire's outlying areas. We didn't get a look at his face, but when the Princess did, she turned pale, like she had seen a ghost." Emerald took in my expression. "Kinda like you."

I was shocked, it couldn't be! "You said black cloak, did you notice anything else about him?" I questioned frantically. I had to be sure before I rushed off.

"What do you mean?" Flash asked.

"His voice, his cutie mark, his coat color." I listed off.

"Well, there was a bit of black sticking out of the end of his hood, and I think I saw a gray coat, why?" Emerald asked. I barely heard her, I had already broken into a dead sprint for the throne room.

As I burst into it, Shining took one look at me and asked, "What's wrong?"

I ignored his question and simply said, "I need _that._ " I didn't think Shining's coat could get any whiter until that day.

"Are you sure?" he asked shakily. I nodded and he led me to a secret room behind the thrones, were a single weapon hung. "You know how much of an issue it will be if he gets his hooves on this." Shining asked.

"If I don't take it, he wins." I responded, taking the black death scythe from the wall. "This is the only weapon that can stop him." Without another word, I teleported out of the throne room with my aunt's Luna Es Tu strapped to my back. He was back, and he would drain her of all her magic, combine it with his own, and kill her when he's done. I had to save my cousin, I had to stop Sombra.

I appeared in front of the Crystal Crypt, as it was called by the locals, and had to use a lot of magic to open the door, which was more of a boulder. I lit my horn enough for light in the otherwise pitch black cave and began walking down the small path. Checking that the Luna Es Tu was secure, I soon came to the lit room at the back, where Cadence was strapped to a ceremonial table.

She saw me come in and called, "Starburst, run!" she had to be the only one I let get away with calling me that.

Before I could respond, a green blast came near my head. I drew the Luna Es Tu and set it for a fight. "My my, the little unicorn to the rescue." Came a gravelly voice. "Is this your knight in shining armor, come to rescue the princess?"

"Let him go," Cadence pleaded, "He has nothing to do with this."

"Well, little knight, will you run?"

"Only a madman speaks to air, and you don't want to see me mad." I warned, "Show yourself, Umbrun Sombra."

"As you wish." a cascade of shadows came down and a pony with a black mane, gray coat covered in silver armor, and curved orange horn appearing from it.

"I'm confused, why now?" I questioned. "Why did you wait for the Umbrun ritual until this specific day. You had her for a week, why not then?"

"The ritual can only be performed on a blue moon," Sombra explained, "I captured her before now to make sure everything was ready."

"But why Cadence? Why her specifically?" I had to keep him talking while I moved closer.

"One alicorn is equivalent to all the magic in the Empire, I would rule it within the week." Sombra gloated. I hated to admit it, but the guy was right.

"That's assuming you can perform the ritual." I countered, "If the sacrifice is in any way resistant, the ritual will fail and both will die. You're smarter than that, so what's the gameplan?" then it clicked. "Unless Cadence isn't the sacrifice." Sombra grinned as I pieced it together. "You're using the changeling abduction to draw the Sisters here and exchange their magic for Cadence's life. That's your play. She's a bargaining chip."

"Very good. Yes, that's my 'play,' as you put it. With Cadence's power, I would be able to rule the Empire again, but with the power of the two sisters, I would rule Equestria itself." Sombra laughed.

"And what about Hope?" I asked, remembering my aunt's story of how they came to know of Sombra's rise to power.

"What about her?" He asked with cold suspicion. Just a few more feet.

"What would she say if you went through with this? What's going to stop her from getting Twilight and her friends and stop you just like all the other times?"

"I will handle her accordingly, she may even get a place in my world."

Got him. "Tell you what you shouldn't have done to fulfill that plan." I mocked.

"What's that?" he asked humorously, just before looking my way.

"You shouldn't have let me get so close to you." My eye began to glow. "Starburst le Equestria commands you, give up this dream of the world, and return to Hope a new stallion."

I waited for the robotic reply, but all Sombra did was laugh at me. "A Mantra, that's your trump card?" he mocked. It didn't work?

"But how?" I gasped.

"Umbrun are immune to Mantras, they consist of the same dark energy that we are."

 _HORSERADISH!_ I thought angrily. "Fine, if I can't command you, I'll just have to kill you. Luna Es Tu!" I shouted, slashing at my enemy. Sombra leapt away and the fight was on.

I swung again, but Sombra deflected it with a black crystal sword he had conjured. "I won't let you harm my homeland." I snarled as I swung again(He dodged). "I won't let you disturb the peace."

"Peace?" Sombra snarled, his almost superior attitude gone. "You speak of peace yet you fight amongst each other constantly." He swung his blade and actually managed to cut my hoof before I could evade the sudden attack. "You claim to be willing to accept all, but you and yours never accepted me. Never accepted us!"

"Us?" I muttered, blocking another savage attack.

"I won't back down, I will plunge the world into darkness, then illuminate the way to true power."

It was then I realised it. He wasn't a bad pony, he was just treated that way. "You think it's all ponies like that?" I questioned.

"What?" Sombra asked.

"You have no idea what the world is like. You claim to be oppressed, but the ponies who did that to you are gone. You can begin anew here, maybe not in the empire, but somewhere."

"NO! You speak these words to confuse me, but it won't work!"

"You think my life's a picnic?" I hissed, pulling my mane away from my neck. "This was done to me by ponies who thought like you. Thought that they had everything taken from them." Sombra froze staring at the long scar that ran down to my shoulderblades. "I didn't want to be around anyone because they thought I was some stuck-up prince. That's why I became Watchful Eye. I wanted to prove that I wasn't what everyone thought."

"You try to appeal to me, little pony?" Sombra hissed.

"No, I just want you to know that I understand you." Sombra looked shocked as I charged the one spell I could never use before. I knew this time was different. "I understand you, Sombra, and I'm going to show you what was born of my pain." I channeled my power through the death scythe and began to chant, "Darkness does not always equate to evil, just as light is not always good. Let the sun and moon purge you!" I brought the blade down and Sombra shrieked as the spell struck him.

"What did you do?" Cadence asked. I had actually forgotten she was there.

I began to unstrap her as I explained, "It's a spell called Balance Bringer. It can have one of two effects." Cadence stood as I continued, "It can either kill a heart of pure darkness, or bring about a new being with a new purpose." we looked at the light to see Sombra, his armor shattered, but still standing.

"But, why?" Sombra asked.

"Faust herself created this spell as her judgement. If you're alive, she has decreed it so." I said calmly, helping him stand.

"But what now? I have nowhere to go."

"You and I have similar goals, let's change the world, and show it what we truly are." The three of us left the Crypt, and from that moment on, Sombra and I traveled together as a detective duo. That's probably him at the door now, it seems we have work to do. Come back sometime to hear about it.


	3. Case of the Wonderbolt Murder

_**Darkness and Light, Into the Chaos.**_

Sombra and I had gotten a call from Ponyville not a month after he had joined me, and we came instantly as it was from the princess of friendship herself. Apparently, Cadence had informed her of my visit, and she wanted to meet me personally. She had also mentioned I traveled with somepony, but made no mention as to who.

Sombra took some convincing (yes you did, don't even) but we decided to hop the train and made for Ponyville the day after we got the message. Sombra pulled his cloak tighter as we came close to the station, and I couldn't help teasing him about it. "Nervous Twilight will remember you?"

"Buck off." he replied. I learned quickly Sombra had a bit of a potty-mouth when he was upset or nervous, so I dropped the subject. "Do you think anypony here knows of me?"

"Only Twilight and her friends, and they only ever caught a glimpse of you then." I assured. We stepped off the train and made straight for the castle. Sombra whistled as it came into view. "Impressive, huh?"

"No joke. I hath not- I mean, haven't seen anything like it even in the Crystal Empire." Sombra replied, awestruck.

I knocked on the door, and a baby dragon with purple scales opened it. "You must be the guests Twilight was expecting, come on in." he said happily. "I'm Spike, by the way."

"I'm Watchful Eye, and this is-" I froze, not sure how to explain immediately.

"Hello again, little dragon." Sombra smiled, pulling down his hood. Spike let out a horrified scream before I put a hoof over his mouth.

"Sombra, hood on for now." I hissed, my eye beginning to glow as I looked at Spike. "Starburst le Equestria commands you, speak nothing of my companion's identity until he has revealed himself to the princess."

I removed my hoof as Spike let out the robotic reply and he led us to the grand ballroom, where a party was going on. "Pinkie invited the Wonderbolts, Zecora, our local zebra, and even the ponies from Appaloosa as well as all the Ponyville ponies." Spike explained.

As if on cue, there was a pink blur and sudden speech, "ohmygosh,newponies!" I looked at Pinkie with a slightly confused expression. "Whoops, sorry. I said 'oh my gosh, new ponies.' I'm Pinkie Pie, your residential party pony."

"Hello, I'm Watchful Eye." I greeted. "Is Twilight around? It was her we were called to meet."

"Right this way." Pinkie said happily, zipping off. She reappeared in a few seconds with Twilight in tow. "Got her!" the energetic pony declared, zipping off again.

"You're the pony from just a bit over a month ago!" Twilight gasped.

"Sure am. Watchful Eye, detective." I replied, bowing.

"Please don't." Twilight sighed as she turned to Sombra. "And who might you be?" She asked.

"I don't think it wise to reveal that in such a crowded room." he replied. "I'm a bit of a nervous pony in crowds."

I couldn't help rolling my eyes as I heard a scream. The four of us, for Spike never left, ran towards the scream when we saw a white-coated, purple-maned unicorn next to a collapsed pegasus. "What happened?" I asked, already in case mode.

"He just collapsed. We were talking and when the server brought some punch, he just collapsed."

"Somepony call a doctor!" I heard a raspy voice call.

"It's no use." We all looked to Sombra, "He's dead." There were gasps as my companion stated it so plainly. There were more when he lowered his hood and lit his horn for a spell.

"What in tarnation's that thing doin here?" I heard a country accent ask.

"Couldn't this be a different pony?" A timid voice asked hopefully.

I ignored them as Sombra finished his spell. "What've we got?" I asked, all business in an instant.

"Cause of death is poisoning, most likely in the drink he had." Sombra replied. "I'm guessing by the uniform, he's a Wonderbolt. He's in his mid-twenties, suffered an accident recently."

"Anything else?"

"Nothing. My examination spell revealed nothing else."

"Well, we have something to go on, at least. Good work, Sombra." There was a six-way gasp and I heard Spike telling Twilight about our encounter at the door, my order carried out. "We need anyone who was on staff tonight. Somepony had to see something." I said as I turned to Twilight.

"Fine, but I want to conduct my own spell to be sure." she replied, calling to the country pony and white unicorn. Her horn lit up and I waved Sombra over.

"What should we do?" he asked. "There's no way anyone will believe a word I say."

"Only the Friendship Court. Nopony else knows about you." I replied with an evil grin, "And don't worry about them, I'll think of something."

"You do know Mantras don't work on Element Bearers, right?" Sombra informed me. I cursed quietly.

"I'll think of something." I repeated, this time more for myself than him. I wouldn't be able to Mantra the bearers, that was going to be a problem. One I would think my way around, sure, but a problem nonetheless.

"Well, I've called the Ponyville police," A raspy voice above us said, "But it's gonna be a while." I looked up to see a Pegasus with a cyan coat and rainbow colored mane. "And can somepony explain why we haven't zapped Sombra yet?"

"Rainbow Dash!" Rarity gasped, "We do not go into details when there is a murder to investigate." Pulling a dress rack seemingly out of nowhere, she changed into an outfit that reminded me of Castleblanca.

"Not this again!" Rainbow Dash groaned.

"Rarity's right, one problem at a time. Besides, Cadence trusts Watchful, and Watchful somehow trusts Sombra, so we can give him the benefit of the doubt."

I smiled slightly as I gave out instructions on what I needed each pony in the room to do.

We had discovered that one of the servers was absent, and later found him unconscious and tied up in one of the many rooms in the tree-like castle. While we waited for any information, I explained Sombra's current situation, and found the six ponies very surprisingly understanding.

The Ponyville PD arrived in the next fifteen minutes and the detective in charge came right up to me. "Watchful Eye? I need you out of this investigation." she said plainly.

"I don't think so, I'll investigate with or without your help, and you know I'll get the colt before you do." I suddenly smirked, "That's why you don't want me here, isn't it?" I asked teasingly. "Come on, you can take the credit for all I care. I just want justice to be done."

"And it will, but you won't be a part of it." I looked at Detective Cuffs, I recognised her from my last trip, and my eye began to glow.

"Come on, just let me help with the investigation." I said kindly.

"Fine, but don't get in the way." Cuffs hissed, my Mantra taking effect. No, this wasn't the first or last time I had used it to get in on the action. I filled Cuffs in on what Sombra and Twilight's spells had found, and what the ponies at the party had told us. "So there was an imposter servant who dealt the dose."

"Probably, but I have no idea where the server went, and neither does anypony else." I replied. "I have my partner in the other room, checking our unconscious friend." As if on cue, Sombra entered and informed us that the server was awake and ready to talk.

In the room she was resting, Party Platter sat up at our entry and began to recount her tale to us. "Now, I didn't see much," She started, "But this is what I did see. While I was going to get the next platter about an hour before the whole thing went down, I saw somepony messing with some of the drinks. I asked what they were doing, but they took one look at me and fired some sort of magic beam. After that, I woke up here."

"Did you get a look at the pony's face?" I asked.

"Or their magic color?" Cuffs added. The serving mare shook her head and we allowed her to get back to bed. "So our culprit is a unicorn, that much we know."

"Yes, but there have to be at least twenty unicorns in the castle's sight alone." Sombra pointed out.

"Sombra's right. We need to find out who snuck in. The kitchen staff must have seen somepony in and out." I concluded.

"I'll have them come into the throne room. Meet there in one hour." Twilight instructed as she dashed off.

Getting a drink and using the bathroom gave us plenty of time to kill before the interviews began, and most turned up nothing useful. Until we got to the chef, that is.

The Chef, that's what he said his name was, told us about some strange behavior in the kitchen. When we asked what he meant, he said in what was clearly a Saddle Arabian accent, "My spices kept getting knocked over when I was sure no one was back there. And there was the strange unicorn whom I did not recognise." When we asked for a description, I used my magic to pull out a pad. "She was about my height, blue coat, and bright blue mane. When I say bright blue, I mean like a cloudless sunny sky."

"Thank you for your time." Twilight said kindly, dismissing The Chef. "So, what do you guys think?"

"We've got an outsider who's probably set to skip town." Cuffs began, before I cut her off.

"No, she'll know we expect her to do that and lie low somewhere in town. I need three ponies to stake out the station just in case, but we need to ask around town about the pony we got from Chef's description. If she's from around here, we'll know about it." I stood and called for Sombra as we left the castle.

"Well, what's the plan?" he asked.

"Working on it." I replied as I felt a familiar presence. "Just ignore me for a few seconds, okay?" I asked my new partner. He nodded and I began, "What do you think of the whole situation?"

" _I think it sounds like Hired Knife."_ Darkus replied.

"No, she'd just slit the pony's throat and be on her way to collect the bounty. Poison doesn't mark that crazy assassin's style." I replied, thinking back to my last encounter with that mare.

" _Perhaps, or perhaps she knows you well enough to throw you off her scent with a poisoning."_ I could almost hear the mocking laughter in the being's voice.

"It's not Hired Knife. The real question is why the Wonderbolt?" I hissed.

" _That is the question, isn't it?"_ Darkus muttered. " _Perhaps there was a vendetta against him. Wonderbolts are the sky police after all, as well as talented performers."_

"Possible, but then what's the connection?"

" _Arrested family member killed in the big house? Or maybe a false accusation that led to the downfall of a reputation?"_ Darkus suggested.

"I guess those theories are possible. I'll ask Rainbow Dash about it, she would know." I felt Darkus withdraw and turned to Sombra. "Remind me to ask about the victim's background when we get back please." I asked politely.

We asked whoever we found on the street if they had seen the pony we were looking for, but we were going on four hours with nothing to show for it. It was getting dark, but then the one pony who I had hoped against seeing walked by and saw me. "Well, well. Watchful Eye, so good to see you." she taunted me, coming to a stop.

"Don't move an inch, Hired." I commanded heatedly.

"Sure thing, hotshot. What's going on?" she asked nonchalantly.

"There was a murder at the castle, with a pony matching your description." Sombra replied coldly.

"That's impossible!" She suddenly snapped, "I just got into town not five minutes ago, and I've never been inside the palace." The unicorn's horn lit and I lit my own in response.

"Come on, Hired, you know you're out-gunned." I hissed. She dulled her horn and looked me in the eye. "So, any idea who could look like you?" I asked.

"You can't seriously believe this assassin!" Sombra huffed.

"She's many things, but a liar isn't one of them. Talk to me, Hired."

"There's only one pony I could think of. But in return for helping you, I go my way after the case is done." She said smugly. I set my jaw and agreed, knowing that I was going to regret this.

...

We walked towards an area not too favored in Ponyville, and yes they do exist. Hired was in the lead and Sombra was behind me. "This has 'bad idea' written all over it." Sombra muttered.

"We don't have a choice." I replied. "Hired doesn't like it when she's falsely accused of murder, she gets enough done for real and she likes the records straight."

"And what's to stop her from killing us and the murderer?" My partener questioned.

"Simple," Hired called behind her, "I want to see if Watchful can ever catch me for my murders. There's no solid evidence against me, after all." She turned her head and gave me a teasing smirk. "How's my big brother, anyway?"

"Black's fine. A lecture like always, but he's in good health." I replied with a shrug. No, that's not how we met, but I'll tell you that story another time. "And he helped me catch a kidnapper in the Crystal Empire not too long ago."

"Oh, and what happened to the kidnapper?" she asked happily, like we were two old friends catching up.

"Well, he became my partner." I shrugged, pointing my horn at Sombra.

"I like him already." Hired replied. We kept walking for a while before Hired called for a stop. "We're here." she informed.

I almost laughed, sure she was teasing me. The place was run down and clearly abandoned, with boards covering the windows and planks falling off the walls. Then I noticed the fresh hoofprints going inside. Hired's horn lit and a griffon hunting knife appeared. "Who are we dealing with exactly?" I asked.

"A pony called Death Drink. She's a master of poisons and brews them here. She's also my twin sister." Hired replied. I was shocked, to say the least. Hired had a sister? Why had neither her nor her brother mentioned it before?

" _Probably because you didn't ask."_ Darkus commented. I told him to check the area and felt him move. After a moment, he returned. " _Nothing. The place is cleared out."_ he informed before withdrawing.

I motioned for everyone to follow as I lead the way into the house. Darkus was right, it looked like an abandoned house that had only been abandoned recently. "Search for any clues as to where she went." I ordered.

The three of us searched the place, but found nothing. Hired spoke up while we were debating our next move, "There's only one place in all Equestria she would feel safe at a time like this." We turned to her and she continued, "When we were young, Black took us to this spot on the lake near Everfree where a sandbar sat. We spent hours playing there every day."

"You think she's there." Sombra guessed. Hired nodded.

"Yeah, but you have to promise to keep this spot secret. It's special, kinda like our sanctuary." Hired said the last part more as a whisper, but I promised without hesitation. Hired then went towards the Everfree Forest, where this special spot of hers sat.

We arrived near a lake in a half-hour's time. It was a beautiful blue lake with fish jumping in and out of the water. "I can see why you came here." I told Hired, who had gone into somewhat of a trance.

When I spoke, she snapped back into the present and replied, "Yeah. well don't go getting any ideas about me showing you this."

"What am I, chop liver?" Sombra asked mildly. He shook his head as we turned away from each other, a blush forming on our cheeks. "We need to get to the island center, that's where the sandbar would be. Ideas?"

"I could conjure a boat." I stated.

"Or we could use the raft over here." Hired replied, pulling out a crude raft. "I can't believe it's still intact after all these years." we all climbed on as Sombra and I summoned paddles to get across while Hired navigated. "So, what are the details here? Death doesn't usually go on a job without telling me."

I told her what had happened and she nodded. "It's possible she didn't want to drag you into this." I shrugged.

"Maybe, a little to the left. But she's been acting strange lately." My ears perked.

"Strange how?" I asked, feigning boredom.

She wasn't fooled as she turned her head towards me with that ever-present teasing smirk. "Watchful, I didn't know you cared."

"I don't I'm just curious." I replied evenly.

Hired smirked knowingly as she answered, "The usual drifting apart stuff. Not answering my letters, getting defensive about her life when she does reply, but she wouldn't do something this stupid if she was planning it."

"You think she's a scapegoat." I stated, but Hired nodded in reply. "I'll get her story and decide from there, just like always." I assured her.

She smiled sarcastically and was about to tease me some more before looking ahead. "We're here." She informed us. We beached the raft and moved to the center of the island, where a single palm tree sat and a unicorn mare resembling my female companion in almost every detail.

The mare looked at us as we approached. "I didn't kill him. That drink should have been fine." she said halfheartedly.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

Death looked shocked I was hearing her out, but after a nod from her sister, she continued, "Twilight hired me as a poison checker. I wanted to get away from my old life, and I was doing a good job. Until this happened that is." she laughed dryly, "Somepony got caught sneaking something into one of the drinks, so I had to steal a uniform and go out to find it."

"So why didn't you ask the server you stole it from to just lend it to you?" Sombra asked.

And then she said it, the one thing that sent my thoughts into a tailspin, "Server? I didn't steal it off of somepony, I picked the lock of the storage room. There was no server involved."

The four of us rushed back to Twilight's castle, anxious to question the unconscious pony. Questions were spinning around in my head. _Who was the unconscious pony? Why was he attacked? Why did Twilight not mention that she had a former poison-specialist assassin in her castle?_ And many many more. I knew that Death wasn't lying, she and her sister had discussed what would happen if she did, and that meant that either 1) The server was attacked and there was a second suspect or 2) the server was faking unconsciousness and everypony in that castle was in danger. I prayed for the former, but it didn't give me much more hope than the latter.

When we came through the doors, Cuffs was sitting next to Party Platter with a cup of tea in her magic grip. "Well, you brought us two assassins." she said with a smile, setting down the tea cup and splashing a little out.

"They're innocent of this crime, and Twilight hired one of them." I replied, taking note of the rat that had taken notice of the spilled tea and began drinking. "I don't suppose you found the reason the Wonderbolt was killed?"

"I spoke to another and found out that he had a gambling problem and lost to the wrong ponies. I'm sure that's why he was killed." Cuffs replied.

"So why not break his knees and rob him later? It doesn't hold." I replied, keeping one eye on that rat.

"It does too, and I'll make sure whoever really hired these two will suffer. So," she turned to my female companions, "Which was responsible?"

I saw the rat keel over and smirked. "Party, who brewed the tea?" I asked. Party took one look at the now dead rat on the floor and bolted. "I don't think so, SOMBRA, HIRED!" I shouted.

Both blocked the entrance and pinned the stallion with their magic. "Now, let's get the real story." I laughed, my eye beginning to glow. "What was the reason you killed that Wonderbolt? Tell me."

My Mantra took effect as Party began, "He was responsible for the death of my father. He was a Wonderbolt too, and he was under that _stallion's_ command." he said stallion like it was the worst insult he could think of. "When the Timberwolves from Everfree attacked the town, his troop was sent to deal with the situation." I had heard something about that attack two months ago. A Wonderbolt had died saving a family while his partner got them out.

"You blamed him for your father's death because he survived and your father didn't." I finished.

"Yes, and now his revenge is complete." I smacked the pony, breaking my hold on him in the process.

"You think just because your father died that his commanding officer didn't try to save him? How stupid can you be?" I hissed. "You should have heard him out before giving the death sentence. Cuffs, take him."

After the arrest was made, Hired slipped away with a note reading: _Until we meet again, little warlock._ Left in my pocket. Death began her job at Twilight's castle again, and Sombra and I went back to our HQ in Canterlot, where I told him about how I met Hired Knife. A story I'll tell you another time. Until then, so long!

 _ **Wow, this was the longest case i wrote in class, and i forgot just how long it actually was.**_


	4. Case of the Runaway Sister

_**Darkness and Light, Into the Chaos.**_

It was two years after I struck out on my own, away from mother and maybe one before my aunt returned from her moon prison. I had established an effective office building near the edge of Canterlot, and I had gotten my official first case. Black Market walked in and looked around as if nervous. He told me his name, and that his sister had left in the middle of the night. "I just want you to make sure she's safe. She was always calculating, but this was rather rash for her."

I told him I would accept the case, and asked where he thought she would go. "You should try Ponyville first. That's where we lived until three years ago and she always wanted to go back." after a few more routine questions, and a picture of his sister, I excused him and left the office for the station. Okay, so I lied a little when I said Black Market wasn't how we met, because I had three things in my mind. 1) a destination, 2) a face, and 3) my target's name, Hired Knife. I thought it was an odd name, but no more odd than my own persona.

When I got off the train, I went directly to Sugarcube Corner for lunch. The pink pony who served me that day was rather… energetic. She did come in handy though when she introduced herself as Pinkie Pie and that she knew everypony in town. "Even the newer arrivals, but I usually throw a welcome party. I'm actually planning a welcome party for a new unicorn, think you can come?"

"Maybe, but if you know everypony, do you know one by the name of Hired Knife?" Pinkie perked up at my question and said that was who she was throwing the party for. "In that case, I'll definitely be in attendance." I said with a smirk. This first case was going to be an easy one, it seemed. Oh, if only I had known.

I came to the party at dusk, and everypony in town seemed to be there. I asked about Hired Knife for about a half-hour before I took a break and made for the punch bowl. I heard a pony pour their own drink and sigh. "Well, this is for sure the perfect party."

I instantly hissed, then looked at my hooves and replied, "Sorry, but I hate perfection. If something is perfect, you can't make improvements."

The pony beside me laughed. "Too true, too true." she agreed. "So, what's your name?" I told her and she smirked. "Nice to meet you, I'm Hired Knife."

I whipped around to look at the pony I had been speaking to and found she was indeed the one I was looking for, down to her joking grin. "So, I guess this means my job is done." I muttered, but she heard me.

"Job? Did my brother send you?" she asked skeptically.

"Yes, but only to check on you." I replied quickly. She seemed to relax at that and the slightly joking composure came back. "So, what is it you do? You know your brother's going to ask me."

"Yeah, he would ask." Hired shrugged sipping her punch. "Well, just tell him that it's the same job, just a different location." We talked about each other for a while, as it was only fair she knew about me. The next day, I packed for the station, figuring my job was done.

If only I was so lucky.

I was waiting at the station when I heard somepony scream. I darted to the source and found a dead body with its throat slit, and instantly checked the pulse. "Call the police, this mare is dead." I instructed nopony in particular. Cuffs arrived a few minutes later and I told her everything I had found out about the pony. He was a stallion tourist who worked in Manehattan. Figuring I had no more help to supply, and no Mantra to use, I headed home and informed Black of the situation.

The next day, I got a letter from Cuffs to come into the station at my earliest convenience. I hopped the next train back and arrived at the police station not five minutes after I got off the train. I asked for Cuffs, and we met in the interview room just a few seconds after. "What can I do for you, detective?" I asked.

"You can tell me what you were doing between six and seven last night." Cuffs replied coldly.

In her statement, I could deduce three things. 1) They determined time of death, 2) They have no suspects and 3) they're going after me because I found the body. "I was at a welcome party on the job. I found her and made my exit when everything was taken care of." I replied.

"Anyone who can back that up?"

"Hired, she was the one I was cleaning with. Oh, and Pinkie Pie could vouch for me." I replied as a thought occurred to me. "Anything else?" I asked sweetly. Cuffs huffed and let me go. I made a beeline for the house of Hired Knife and found it empty. _I'm going to have to ask around to find her._ I thought. I began my search at the neighbor's houses, but came up with nothing so I went for Sugarcube Corner to speak to Pinkie.

Needless to say, I wasn't looking forward to it. That pony was out of control and belonged in an asylum. When I came in, though, I found Hired seated at a table. "Mind if I join you?" I asked, coming up next to her.

"What, you stalking me now?" she asked with a teasing smirk, gesturing to a seat.

"No, I prefer to think of it as 'obsessively shadowing.'" I replied, causing her to laugh. "I came to warn you the cops are probably going to show up asking about you so unless you have something to hide, you might want to answer me so I can help."

"Why would you want to help me?" Hired asked. Good question; Why did I want to help? I barely knew this mare, and for all I know she was the killer.

"Call it curiosity. I'm curious about the mare I was employed to track down." I decided. Hired shrugged.

"Alright, so what's the plan?" she asked.

I filled her in on the case, then, "Where did you disappear to around six last night?" was the first thing out of my mouth.

"You supposed to help me or arrest me?" Hired teased. Even back then she was infuriating.

"That depends on where you were." I deadpanned. She seemed to somber up after that comment and replied she had been out getting some air. "Did you go anywhere near the station?"

"No, the guy had his throat slit, right?" She asked. I nodded. "Weird," she muttered where she thought I couldn't hear her, "Who the Tartarus used my MO?"

"What do you mean, MO?" I asked, startling her.

"No-nothing! We should look into who this guy knew. Did you get a name?" I nodded suspiciously and we set off to find the bouncy pink party pony.

...

Cuffs intercepted us on our search, asking why I had a suspect with me. "We're investigating. I fully intend to cooperate with the Ponyville PD, but I don't like things left in the air."

"Forget it, kid. We have this investigation in the bag. Go back to your library." My eyes burned with anger at that comment.

"Please, you have no leads, no suspects besides the two of us, and no idea what you're doing. I have an alibi, and we need to find Pinkie to ask her about the victim. Good day, detective." I snapped, beginning to move around the stubborn pony, only to feel hooves grab me.

"Not so fast, I'm bringing you in for obstruction of justice." Cuffs replied with an evil grin. Sadistic might be more accurate, though.

"Nice grip, let me show you mine." I laughed, knocking her aside like a rag doll. "You are nothing compared to me. I'm going, and you can't stop me. Let's go, Hired." the mare followed me while Cuffs lay in a daze.

"I think I might get to like you, detective." Hired laughed as we found our target.

Pinkie Pie was at a booth in the town square buying some sort of hat when she spotted us. "Hey, you're Watchful and Hired, right?" For a moment I was confused, not quite used to my alias yet, then nodded when I remembered that was my name. "What can I do for ya?"

"We were wondering if you knew anything about Business Proposition." I replied, then realized my mistake. Pinkie knew everypony in _Ponyville!_ The victim was from _Canterlot!_ "Actually, I guess you wouldn't would you?"

"Actually, Business was born here in Ponyville, and he was one of my first friends here." Pinkie replied. Thank Faust! She knew him. "Why, investigating his murder?"

"How did you-?"

"Just a hunch." Pinkie giggled as she paid the pony at the booth and put her new hat on. "He was in some serious debt to the wrong ponies. I tried to help him, but he was always the independent sort."

"Those 'wrong ponies' come with names?" Hired asked.

"None that I know, sorry. I do know they run a smuggling ring in Manehattan, but the cops can't seem to lock in on them." Pinkie informed. We thanked her for her time and got out of there before she could ask us about her "Cherrychanga" recipe.

"So, the victim was in debt to a smuggler's band." I muttered.

"Yeah, and if I'm right about which one, they would do something like this." Hired replied.

"What do you mean?"

"These ponies Pinkie was talking about are a band called the Night Walkers. They don't just smuggle drugs and weapons into the country."

"They smuggle creatures." I guessed dryly. I hated these ponies already. "And they'd be willing to kill?"

"To keep their operation untouchable? Tartarus yeah." Hired replied, just before we had bags slipped over our heads.

...

I was mentally cursing myself for getting taken so easily as we were stuffed into a carriage. I calmed down and began to think. These ponies were probably here to make sure we found out nothing about the murder. I could tell by the way the carriage bumped we were heading at a steady trot so as not to attract attention. They were probably taking us somewhere to get rid of us. I thought of some spells that could make that difficult. I whispered my plan to Hired, who was pressed against me in the trunk compartment.

I could hear her horn light as her voice came in my head. _I doubt that will work. There are two unicorns in this carriage and an earth pony outside with a pegasus driving._

 _Well what do you suggest? We need at least one of them alive._ I snapped in reply.

 _I suggest you stay quiet and let me think for a moment. I've got-_ the connection was cut as a dispel was cast. I swore at the rotten luck. I had to get us out of there, but how? While I was pondering this question, the carriage stopped and we were yanked out of the small space.

The bags were removed and I looked into the eyes of an all-black stallion with rope around his legs and an indifferent expression. My gaze didn't waver until I heard a door opening and an all-yellow mare came into view. She looked at us with a sadistic grin and went to the stallion first. "Well, Darkus, we finally have you." she laughed, slapping him hard.

"You don't have jack and you know it." he replied mildly. The mare looked angry at that and charged her horn.

"I'll teach you to talk back to me!" she screamed, blasting a pencil-sized hole in Darkus' chest. She then looked to me and tossed me into him, with Hired close behind. "This is the end for you, I'm afraid! Nopony can find out about us or the crimes we committed!" she laughed, charging her horn again

 _Dammit._ I thought, _Now I'll never be able to show the world that I can make it on my own, all because of this bitch._

It was then that I felt the second presence in my mind. I thought at first it was Hired again, but then a male voice asked me, " _Do you wish to live?"_ I was stunned. This was the voice of the dead pony beneath me, but how? " _I can sense a strong desire to live. I can grant you the power of the Gods. In return, you will house my spirit. But know this, you will be an outcast, destined for a life of solitude. Nopony will accept you while you possess this power. Will you accept my contract?"_

I weighed the pros and cons at lightning speed. A life of solitude? Nopony would accept me? What else is new? With a strong voice, I replied, "Very well, I accept the terms of your contract."

" _Then let us begin."_ Darkus said coldly.

I was back in real time and the mare was about to fire. My left eye was glowing red as I looked her in the eye. "Starburst le Equestria commands you, release us and answer our questions!"

That was the first time I had used the Mantra, the first time I had heard the robotic, "Yes, my lord." and the first time somepony did what I wanted without protest.

"Were you involved in the murder of Business Proposition?" I asked.

"Yes, we hired an assassin to kill him. The first one we contacted refused us, but the second was glad to do it." the mare replied. I'd tell you her name, but quite honestly…. I don't remember!

"Second? You said I was the only one for the job." Hired asked, causing me to whip around to face her. "So, I was an assassin back in my crime days. I don't do that anymore." she defended.

I decided to deal with Hired later as I turned back to the mare. "Why did you kill him?"

"He threatened to talk to the police if we didn't give him more time to pay his debts to us." she replied. So Pinkie was right. "We couldn't afford to do either, so we paid a hundred bits to get him killed to keep quiet."

"You were so worried about being shut down?" Hired asked.

"We couldn't risk exposure." She answered. "If the cops found us, we'd lose our major shipping line. Cuffs and the police arrived as I was about to ask my next question.

"Hooves up, you're all under arrest!" she called, pulling some sort of gun out of her belt.

I turned my glowing eye on her and the others and said, "Arrest only this mare, we have nothing to do with it." As my Mantra took effect, I turned and told the mare, "And cooperate with the police, answer all their questions truthfully."

The mare nodded as Cuffs robotically ordered, "Get the mare, and we're done here." The other ponies did as instructed and soon it was just me and Hired.

"How did you do that, little warlock?" she asked. Looking back, that was when I got stuck with that absurd nickname. "The pony that was killed do something?"

"Pretty much. So, I guess I'll walk you home." I shrugged as I led the way back to town square. "Can I trust you not to reveal my true identity?" I asked after a while.

"Of course. If there's one thing I'm good at, it's keeping a secret." Hired replied humorously. We talked for a few minutes, and were soon in front of her house. "So long, warlock."

On the way to the train station, a mugger appeared from the shadows. "Hand over all your money!" he demanded, levitating a knife into view.

My eye began to glow and I ordered, "Go away, and never mug again." as he nodded and left, I couldn't believe what was happening, the power I had been given. As I stood and looked at these ponies all around me on my walk, I couldn't help smiling. I had the power to bend ponies to my will, I could do anything I wanted to them. "Well then," I trailed off, giving an evil smirk.

 _ **Very Code Geass, I know, but it's what I got. Until next time, whenever I get around to making the next case.**_


End file.
